The English teacher at Wauwatosa East High School was singled out in a Wall Street Journal op-ed piece Thursday by Gov. Scott Walker as an example of why collective bargaining needs to be eliminated in Wisconsin.

Walker writes: "In 2010, Megan Sampson was named an Outstanding First Year Teacher in Wisconsin. A week later, she got a layoff notice from the Milwaukee Public Schools. Why would one of the best new teachers in the state be one of the first let go? Because her collective-bargaining contract requires staffing decisions to be made based on seniority."

The back story: It's true that Sampson experienced the effect of what's commonly known in education circles as "last hired, first fired" union policies, which dictate that in times of layoffs, young talent gets cut before teachers with more seniority, no matter how much promise or potential they hold as educators. We featured Sampson's story in an article about the MPS layoffs in June.

But it's unclear if Walker knew that Sampson, after being laid off from MPS, applied for and received a job teaching English at Wauwatosa East High School. That's the same school Walker's two sons attend. MPS attempted to recall Sampson in August, but she declined.

Sampson said in an e-mail exchange with the Journal Sentinel Thursday morning that she felt uncomfortable with the governor using her story to push an agenda.

"My opinions about the union have changed over the past eight months, and I am hurt that this story is being used to make me the poster child for this political agenda," Sampson said. "Bottom line: I am trying to do my job and all this attention is interference and stress for me."

Sampson said her phone rang four times during evening parent-teacher conferences, and that more than a half-dozen calls from the media have come into her voice mail. Teachers have popped their heads into her class all day as well and students keep asking her about it.

Sampson said she hoped to soon return to a more low-profile existence.

"I'm a better teacher than I am a media commodity," she said.

About Erin Richards

Erin Richards covers K-12 education in urban and suburban Milwaukee, as well as state politics related to education issues.